YET ANOTHER 5 songs you probably forgot about until you read this article

Yet Another 5 Songs you completely forgot about until you read this post

By: Brian Cotnoir

     Wow, my last post—and third in this edition—got such positive feedback that I just had to write another one, where I attempt to remind you songs that you—may have—completely forgot about.  Now, one thing I often overlook to when I compile these lists is artists who were semi-popular in the US, but were huge in their home countries.  So for some of these artists, you may be saying “Who the hell is that”?, but I do distinctly remember them having moderate—at best—success in the US.  So let’s not waste any more time, and let’s just have some fun memberin’.

1.) Southside by Moby ft. Gwen Stefani

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Many things come to mind when you think of Gwen Stefani.  Some people remember her as the bada$$ lead singer of the band No Doubt, other people are more familiar with her pop songs and solo career, while other’s know her as one of the co-Hosts on the popular American reality show “The Voice”.  There’s no doubt (pun TOTALLY intended) that Gwen Stefani is one of the best and most influential female singers of all-time, and I believe that one of her most underappreciated works she has done was her collaboration on the song “Southside” with Moby.  I have no idea what genre of music Moby qualifies under.  I’ve heard some people say he’s a DJ, other people tell me he’s a producer, while others say he’s an experimental artist, but one thing is for certain, his song “Southside” is probably his greatest contribution to music, and including Gwen Stefani on the song was a brilliant move on his part. 

2.) Are you Jimmy Ray?- Jimmy Ray

It’s so weird to see how musicians today like Mark Ronson, Bruno Mars, Meghan Trainor, and the late Amy Whinehouse all seem to have that Retro-Inspired Sound in some of their music.  You know that sound that’s hybrid of pop-music and old 50’s and 60’s rock music?  Well, it’s amazing that everyone talks about how influential these artists are in creating and developing that sound, and yet never hear anyone talk about Jimmy Ray!  Now, you’re probably asking yourself, “Who the hell is Jimmy Ray?”.  Jimmy Ray is in English Pop/Rock Musician (so that’s probably the biggest reason you never heard of him, but what’s cool and interesting about Jimmy Ray was that he was creating Pop Music with a Retro sound style all the way back in 1998!  Jimmy Ray’s one and only hit “Are you Jimmy Ray” got some popular airplay (largely thanks to his music video) in early 1998.  The best way I can describe Jimmy Ray’s look and sound is early Elvis Presley meets Johnny Cash’s Man in Black, meets Buddy Holly, and meets George Michael’s “Faith” years.

3.) Blue- LeAnn Rimes

I grew up in a household with parents who loved country music.  Two country musicians I remember listening to a lot as a kid are Billy Ray Cyrus and LeAnn Rimes.  And you would think with the popularity of Female country singers like Miranda Lambert, Gretchen Wilson, Carrie Underwood Faith Hill, and ladies from Little Big Town, and Lady Antebellum that someone in music world would say “Hey, what about LeAnn Rimes?”.  You rarely hear people mention her name today, but “Blue”—a cover song she sang and recorded—when she was only 13 years old, blew up all over the radio in the 1990’s.  My parents had this album, all my aunts and uncles had this album and played it, and she was good.  She has a lot better voice than a lot of other women in country music today, so I just want to know why we don’t hear anything about LeAnn Rimes anymore, especially her early work on the radio.

4.) Gotta Tell You–Samantha Mumba

Another Irish Pop-Star that just couldn’t find a lot of success in the U.S. was Samantha Mumba.  Her only real success musically in the U.S. was her song “Gotta Tell You”, which I remember got a heavy rotation down at the roller rink the music video was featured a lot of Disney Channel in the 1990’s back when they used to play music videos for songs that were featured in some of their upcoming movies.  Samantha Mumba may not have found a lot of success in the U.S. as a musician, but she has found some success in her native Ireland...as an actress!  She’s appeared in a few films, and I actually saw her in a zombie horror-comedy film called “Boy Eats Girl” (believe me, the title is not as erotic as it sounds).  I couldn’t believe it was her when I saw it, but I’m glad to hear she is having some success.

5.) Sunny Came Home- Shawn Colvin

Originally, I was going to put “Where have all the cowboy’s gone” by Paula Cole on this list, but after consulting a few friends of mine, who told me that they still remember this song, and can actually sing the chorus to the song, proves to me that it’s a song that isn’t too far removed from people’s memories, but another song that I mentioned, from the same year that “Where have all the cowboy’s gone” didn’t ring a bell for any of them.  The other song I mentioned was “Sunny Came Home” by Shawn Colvin.  What’s crazy is this song one two Grammy’s for Song of the Year and Record of the Year—it actually beat out “where have all the cowboy’s gone” for both awards, and yet less people remember it.  When Shawn Colvin, I hope Sunny Come’s Home, and more people begin to remember your one hit song.

Well there you have it again, I hope once again that these songs brought back some good memories for you, and be sure to click the links below to check out the other songs we’ve talked about in the past.

ANOTHER 5 SONGS THAT YOU PROBABLY FORGOT ABOUT UNTIL YOU READ THIS ARTICLE